3 February 2010: During a press conference, the Chair of the UN Commission for Social Development, Leslie Kojo Christian, highlighted that the 48th annual session of the Commission for Social Development, which will run from 3-12 February 2010, in New York, US, will focus on social integration as a priority theme.
He noted that although progress has been made to empower the disempowered, policies related to social integration have often been developed on a piecemeal basis, with limited participation of concerned groups. He added that threats posed by the economic and climate change crisis will make it more challenging to combat persistent social exclusion. He reminded that at the 1995 World Summit for Social Development, in Copenhagen, Denmark, Governments agreed on a Declaration and a Programme of Action calling for socially integrated societies, including the participation of the world’s most vulnerable groups in decision-making processes. At this session, the Commission, which has a membership of 46 States, is expected to adopt a resolution to help guide governments as they formulate policies to build more inclusive societies. [UN Press Release][48th Session Website]